Signal Winter 2020 Newsletter

www.alliancecom.net 7 Use These Guidelines to Find Your Perfect Speaker How to Set Up a Smart Speaker Setting up a smart speaker is pretty straightforward, and you don’t need any special technical skills to do it. However, if you’re not comfortable with this type of task, ask a tech-savvy friend to help. The exact process differs between devices, but the steps will be something like these: 1. Make sure you have electrical power and Wi-Fi available. 2. Plug in the device. 3. On your phone, download or open the corresponding app. 4. Using the app, go through the setup process and adjust your personal settings. 5. Speak the wake word to activate the device. Note that, with Amazon Echo devices, you have three options for what you want the wake word to be. 6. Try a few simple commands like asking the device to tell you the weather or play a song. 7. Using the app, “train” the device on your voice. OK, you’re ready to take the plunge and buy a smart speaker. Since there are many on the market, you’ll need to decide which one will be best for you. Here are some questions to ask yourself to find a smart match. How much do you want to spend? Smart speaker prices start at $49 for an Echo Dot and go up to $399 for a Sonos Move. Set your budget before you do any further searching. What ecosystem do you already use? Are you a die-hard Apple fan? Do you prefer Google’s software? Or is Amazon something you can’t live without? If you’re already issuing commands to your phone starting with “Hey Google,” then it will be easy to do the same with a Google Nest. How picky are you about sound quality? If sound quality doesn’t matter to you, choose your smart speaker based on other features. If it does, pick one like Sonos One. It’s designed with music in mind and connects to about 100 streaming audio services worldwide. Do you want to use it as a smart home hub? Many smart speakers are designed specifically to help you build a smart home. They include Samsung SmartThings Hub, Ama- zon Echo Plus, Google Home Hub, and Apple TV 4K. These devices allow you to connect devices without wires, create on/ off schedules, and control your gadgets while away from home. Where do you want to use it? Smaller speakers like the Echo Dot are great for small spaces or if you want to put one in each room. Models with screens are good for the kitchen, especially if you want to view recipes or watch videos while you cook.